Queens of the Castle
by FrankieRae
Summary: Follow the adventures of Frank, Karen, and Amy as they navigate their life as a "normal" family. Unfortunately, bad guys seem to swarm this crew... Rated T for possible sex scenes, and maybe a few well-placed swats here and there. (My other stories typically contain spanking, so you've been warned if you don't like it.) Also why the heck doesn't Amy Bendix have a character tag?


_7:02_ _pm_

"She promised to be home by now," Frank remarked, voice gravelly, after checking the time on his watch.

Karen sighed, refraining the urge to roll her eyes and looked over from chopping vegetables to him, "It's 7:03 Frank, Amy and I agreed on 7:00 but this is New York City, in the tourist trap of summer, I'm not going to start worrying over a few minutes. I'm sure she'll call if she's caught up for too long."

"I know, I just want this night to be perfect for you… this is your first time hosting in our new place and that kid can be-"

"Can be what? Too much like you?" Karen's eyes twinkled, teasing him. Frank was the one to roll his eyes and mutter something like _yeah yeah, whatever _before grabbing a bowl to put the freshly cut veggies into.

Karen grabbed his hand and turned him to face her, "It'll be great babe, it's only Foggy and Mari, and they're excited to meet her and see the place just… take a breath," she leaned up and softly pressed her lips to his. Frank's hands automatically going to her waist, bringing her in closer, "We might have five minutes…" he whispered huskily into her ear.

She looked up at him, amused, "I thought after she walked in on us before you'd want to avoid that risk for as long as possible." Frank groaned in response, "don't remind me. Ugh, that definitely killed the mood." Karen laughed as they pulled apart.

"Will you grab the meat from the fridge? We can prep it to throw on the grill soon, Foggy and Mari should be here in about… 20 minutes," Karen said.

Frank let out a low growl, "and Amy better be here in less than 10 if she knows what's good for her."

_9:42 pm_

Frank's eyes darted to the large clock on the living room wall for what felt like the millionth time. _This wasn't like Amy_, he decided, _no updates as to where she was, not even a text or call._ His eyes caught Karen's gaze and he noticed some worry. _At least I'm not the only one._ Frank smiled reassuringly, even if he didn't feel it himself, and rejoined the conversation. The two couples had a lovely dinner and were now reclining, drinking some wine, in the living room space. _How domestic_, Frank thought sardonically. He had to admit he didn't ever imagine himself in this position again.

But then his girls happened. Well, first Karen, then Amy, then Karen again, then Amy came back and it just… it's a long story. But what mattered was the three of them had fallen into a comfortable rhythm. Frank, still going under the last name Castiglione, had found a place for them a few months back and they settled into a routine quickly. I mean sure, Amy still responded to him best, and was cold to Karen at worst, but they were all family. On top of that, they were all finally at ease from the dangers of what-will for what felt like the first time in forever and… _wait,_ Frank cut off his own thoughts, _is that what this is? _It had been a long minute since Frank was a full-time parent, but he definitely remembered what happened whenever his kids had gotten particularly comfortable, or safe, in a new place and school. _Testing the boundaries._

"- what do you think, Frank?" he heard Mari's voice through his thoughts and quickly looked at her, "do you agree with them, the pleasure of sushi? Or is a good slice better?" she smiled at him. It must've been obvious his mind was anywhere but here.

He shrugged, "Eh, who needs that frou frou stuff when you live in the city with the best pizza in the world?" Frank's eyes twinkled as he looked at Karen. He knew her stance on the delicacies of fish and rice and fully expected the eyeroll he received in return.

What he didn't expect was the small jump she made when her phone buzzed near her and Karen wasted no time in grabbing and checking it, though her face fell and he knew it wasn't from Amy. This night had been Karen's, she was so excited for Foggy, who was like a brother to her, to finally meet Amy, so he let her plan. She coordinated dinner, communicated with Amy, and set to making it all happen with Frank's help. But, now it seemed he might have tried helping the Amy situation a little more to ensure the teen's arrival.

He looked over at Foggy and attempted a smile, guessing it fell flat when the pair looked at each other and Foggy faked a large yawn.

"Oh wow, it's gotten late I didn't even realize," Mari commented, moving to stand, "we should get out of your hair." Foggy joined her in rising, and Karen and Frank quickly followed.

"Oh, you guys, no really-" Karen started, but Foggy cut her off with a hug, "thank you for hosting us, and for the delicious meal. We'll have to do it again sometime," the _when all of us can be here_ hung in the air, but no one made further comment to it.

Everyone said their goodbyes, and within a few minutes, it was just the two of them in the apartment again.

Frank scrubbed a hand down his face, "'m gonna kill her." he stated, offhandedly.

Karen glared at him, "you will not."

Frank matched her look, knowing he wasn't upset at _her_ but he's never been the best at controlling who receives his frustration.

"Karen, she knows the rules; be home on time, keep us updated, and use the _goddamn _phone we gave her," his voice was gravel by the end. _Amy knew the rules, alright. But what the hell was she trying to accomplish by ignoring them? _

Karen grabbed her phone, "let me try her cell again before you go try to break out your Punisher vest." Frank shrugged. The idea had crossed his mind…

"... _it's Amy and here's the beep…_" Frank heard the voicemail play, then the beep over Karen's phone, "Um, Amy, hi. It's Karen… again. Please call us back soon, we're worried. We just want to know you're safe. Okay, bye." Karen pressed the button to end the call, then brought her hand up, resting the phone near her mouth and staring off into the distance.

Frank closed the space between them and wrapped her up in his arms, kissing her hair, "you okay?"

Karen turned, resting her head on his shoulder and taking a deep breath before speaking, "I just wanted this night to be perfect, y'know? Foggy means so much to me and I love him with Mari and I wanted them to meet my little family unit too…" Frank nodded, "Well, if she's fine we can kill her together," he smiled down at her beautiful face. Karen scoffed, "I highly doubt she'd appreciate that."

Frank looked at her, brows furrowed now, "what's that s'posed to mean?"

Karen pulled away, moving to sit on the couch. "It means she doesn't listen to me, Frank. She doesn't care about what I say! Your word is Bible and I'm just… a cohabitant in her house." Frank sat next to her, scowl deepening, "Karen what in the fuck are you talking about?" Karen sighed again, "I really didn't want to tell you about this…" "Well you better start talking because my mind is jumping to all the worst possibilities right now."

"No, Frank, it's not that bad. Okay, you remember a couple weeks ago, you left for a few days for some… business?" at his nod, she continued, "well, during that time, Amy broke curfew." Frank cut in, "by how long?"

"... all night." Frank's face turned thunderous, "that girl stayed out _all fucking night_ and you didn't think to mention it to me?!"

Karen glared, "of course I thought about telling you Frank but I'll stop this conversation right here if you're going to start speaking to me like that. I'm trying to explain this to you so are you going to keep up this commentary or can you hear me out?" Frank relented. This fire was one reason he loved this woman so much, a lesser one would wilt under his temper, but not Karen Page.

He nodded though, not trusting his voice to sound any less scary, and she continued, "I didn't tell you because I thought I had it handled. I was up when she got home that morning and we talked. Well, sorta, more like I yelled about how scared I had been and she brushed me off and then I grounded her for the rest of the weekend, having her help me around the house." Frank's frown deepened once again, "and then?" Karen looked at him, "and then what? You got back, we returned to normal and didn't talk about it again."

Frank looked at her, "What? No explanation of consequences for behaviour? No apology from her?" Karen scowled this time, "No, I guess not, Frank. I'm not good at this! I'm not a parent, I've never been one. I don't know why I thought I could make this work I just-"

"Karen, stop. Take a breath. I didn't mean to make that sound like an attack, I'm sorry. You're doing a great job, I just didn't realize this is all. I couldn't do this without you," he leaned in and kissed her. Pulling apart slightly he smiled ruefully, "I gotta say though, you're a badass woman, Karen Page. Never thought I'd see the day a teenaged girl would be the person who gets to ya."

Karen shoved him away, but a smile betrayed her, "you shut up, Frank Castle. I could still take you down." Frank laughed and brought her in toward him again, leaning back, her head resting on his shoulder. "Of that I have no doubt, Miss Page, no doubt at all."

_2:07 am_

The key turned almost silently, sliding the lock out of place. She opened the door quietly, and closed it the same. Scanning the room she saw Frank and Karen, asleep on the couch, illuminated only by a candle on the coffee table, next to Frank's feet. _That's probably a fire hazard_, the teenager remarked. She eyed the hallway, and saw a sliver of her door, the first one on the left, from where she stood. As if she was walking on clouds, she noiselessly made her way in that direction. Just as she was within inches of her door, a light flipped on behind her, "freeze." was the raspy order she heard next. Amy stopped, weighing her options, she didn't get too far before, "sit." was demanded. She turned, fully ready to make a comment about how she's not a dog, when she caught a glimpse of the man's face and gulped. Amy wasn't sure she had seen a face like that from Frank since they were on the run.

"I said, sit." He pointed to a chair, a few feet from where he was on the couch. Amy's legs moved of their own accord in his direction and she couldn't decide if she was grateful for the innate self-preservation, or disappointed she couldn't hold her ground. At the same time, Karen stirred, and once her eyes focused on Amy, all the sleepiness disappeared.

She jumped up, "Oh, thank God you're safe!" Karen pulled the younger girl into a tight hug. When, after a few moments, it wasn't returned, Karen let go and backed away. Frank caught a flash of hurt in her eyes as she sat down next to him again, and his fire from earlier was reignited. This time, with the object of it in the same room.

He looked up at Amy, "If you don't sit your ass down in the next two sec-" the threat hung in the air as the teen quickly plopped down in the chair. Frank leaned forward, elbows on knees, and pinned the girl with a hard look.

"Where have you been?" Frank demanded, working overtime to keep the anger from filling every part of his voice.

"Nowhere, I-" and she was cut off as quickly as she started speaking, "Little girl, I know you did not just give me the shittiest excuse I've ever heard. You make us wait seven _fucking _hours on you and the best you come up with is that? Bullshit. Try again," his earlier attempt of keeping calm was flung out the window. It was obvious to anyone who knew him closely, such as the ladies in his presence, that his voice was dangerously close to _Punisher_ territory.

Amy mumbled and Frank leaned his ear toward her, eyebrows raised, "sorry, say 'gain? I missed that."

The teen shot up, "I said, 'if you'd give me a fucking chance to talk, I could tell you!'" her voice filled the apartment. Frank paused, he had mixed feelings here; he thought the first time he heard Amy swear, he'd be filled with a sort of…pride? But currently the man was fighting an urge to wring her neck _no, not literally_. It only took a second for Frank to catch his bearings again, unfortunately for Amy.

He matched her, standing up just as fast and taking a step toward her, "I don't think so, little girl. I think your chance to explain was earlier at seven, and again when you ignored Karen's call at ten, and hell even _midnight_, but now you've lost that privilege. So I'll ask the questions and you keep up, capeesh?" by the end his finger was pointed at her, and Amy's resolve was thickening.

"NO!" the girl exploded, "No, I don't understand! I'm _sixteen_ years old and if I want to go out with friends, and skip some stupid dinner party of playing house, I will!" she ran to her room and was a split second from being followed when Frank felt Karen's hand grab onto his arm, "Just give her a minute," Karen said, but it was drowned out by Amy's bedroom door slamming closed.

Frank scowled at the hallway the girl had retreated to just moments prior, and shook the hold off his arm, "As far as I'm concerned, she's wasted her minutes tonight." But when he moved next he didn't go in the direction of her room. Instead, he opened the coat closet, grabbing a toolbox from the top shelf.

Karen followed him, curiously, "…what are you doing?" Frank opened the box, selected the necessary tools, and grunted, "exactly what I promised I'd do last time she slammed that goddamn door." It took Karen a moment to recall, but when she did, her mouth went into an 'o'.

"Frank, you can't _actually_ do that, though. She's a teenager, she needs her space!" Karen explained.

Frank stood back up after closing the kit, "Babe, I don't talk just to hear myself. I think she'll survive a few days without a door." And with that, he made his way toward Amy's room. Karen put her hand on her forehead. _This night was not going to end well_.

After three solid knocks on her bedroom door, Amy looked toward it, still making no move to actually open it though.

When trying the knob revealed it was locked, Amy heard Frank through the door again, "Amelia Blythe Bendix, you have to the count of three to open this door." Amy's stomach jolted at the use of her full, _awful_, name, and once again her subconscious self-preservation acts kicked in as she found her feet carrying her toward the door.

She stopped in front of it. "One." She heard Frank say, this time his voice sounding a bit scarier due to the closed distance.

"Two," he continued. _Shit_. Why was she even doing this? What was she trying to prove again…?

Frank's voice startled her, "I can hear you on the other side of the door, Amy. Open it." Immediately her arm reached out and clicked the lock.

Amy stepped back as Frank entered. Instead of engaging with her though, he surprised her by opening her door further and inspecting the hinges. Only then did she notice the drill in his right hand, and for the second time in as many minutes, her stomach dropped.

"What are you doing?" Amy asked the man as he kneeled down and starting lining up the bit with the first screw. Frank paused for a moment and looked over at Amy, "keepin' a promise," he replied gruffly, and the drill started _whirr_ing. Amy's jaw dropped, she lifted both arms up, hands pulling at the roots of her hair, "No, Frank, _what_ are you _doing_?!" She enunciated urgently, not liking how this looked… at all.

Frank paused and looked at her again. _How can his stare be so piercing?_ Amy lamented internally, but shut up when he asked, "What did I say would happen the next time you slammed this goddamn door?" He asked conversationally, but she knew that was a front. It quickly came rushing back to her, the last time she was angry and slammed her bedroom door. I mean, technically that wasn't _this_ door, but she didn't think Frank needed her to point that out.

"Earth to Amy. You remember?" Her eyes met Frank's again, and she nodded. "Can't hear your head rattle, kid." Ugh, he was toying with her now. This was torture.

"Yo-…you said you would take the door off," she replied lamely. He smirked, "and for how long?"

This time, Amy dug a little deeper in her memory. "Until I can communicate respectfully," she recited. Which, if you're asking her, sounded like the biggest load of poo coming from Mr. Shoot-First-Ask-Questions-Never. Unfortunately, no one was asking her.

"Great work," Frank said as he got back to work on the hinges.

Amy's mouth dropped again and she made her way to the hallway, effectively stepping over Frank's leg. "Karen!" She didn't have to go far, as she found the older woman in the kitchen, starting on dishes. "This is so unfair," the teen continued, "you're just going to let him do this?"

Now, this tactic had worked a couple times in the past, Karen is a strong feminist and very persuasive with Frank, after all. But, this time, Karen didn't engage.

Amy pressed on, "c'mon this is okay with you? Don't I have a right to privacy, like isn't that my right as an American citizen or something?" Amy heard a scoff behind her and whirled around, finding Frank, one hand holding a drill, the other filled with hinges, and behind him she could see her door propped up against the wall. The man moved to set his items down on the kitchen table, then faced the teen again, arms crossed.

"What?" the young blonde challenged.

Frank shook his head again, "Nah, I just find it hilarious how you're comfortable treating someone like shit until you need them to fight for you. Here I thought you were better than that." Amy sucked in a breath like she had been punched and he continued, "Karen has been nothing but kind to you since you came back, immediately accepting that you would stay with the both of us, helping enroll you in school, taking you shopping, and you've done what? Been a selfish brat? Skip out on rules when I'm not here to enforce them? Huh?"

Amy looked down, all of her fight gone, "No, I… I don't know," she whispered. Frank took a step forward and pressed on, eyes locking with Karen's for just a moment, he nodded, his voice slightly calmer this time, "Why did you flake tonight? I'm pretty sure Karen made it clear how important this was to her – to us."

The kid half-heartedly rolled her eyes, "I don't see the point."

Frank drew his eyebrows together, "Come again? What point is that exactly?"

Amy scoffed, "us! Playing house and acting normal as if you're not still putting on that stupid skull vest and going out to fight! Sure, it's less frequent, maybe you'll take a week or two off here and there, but then you'll come home late, bloody, in pain, and we're just supposed to ignore the fact you're still putting yourself at risk. What in the fustercluck is the point of pretending to be a family if you're not putting in the work too?" Amy felt hot tears start to build up in her eyes, but she breathed through them. _I'm not crying. I refuse._

Karen came from behind Amy and stood next to Frank, holding his hand in her own. _She was good for him_, Amy had to admit.

"Why don't the three of us go sit and talk through this," Karen suggested. Amy met Frank's eyes and when she nodded the three moved into the living room, reclaiming the seats they had occupied earlier; Frank and Karen sitting on the couch, with Amy in a comfy chair, across from Frank.

The air was tense for a moment, no one really knowing where to start.

"You weren't supposed to know I was going out again," Frank suddenly said, "I want nothing more for you than being able to go to a normal school and have friends, I don't need you thinking about me going out as the Punisher."

Amy slightly nodded, "But I do know, and I hate it. I think it's stupid you're going to risk an amazing relationship and a chance for your own normalcy just to knock around some bad guys. Oh and before you start into your whole "this is who I am" bullshit monologue, let me remind you that this is 2019. Superheroes exist. I think they can handle you going into retirement just fine."

Frank opened his mouth, then closed it, this damn kid occasionally had that affect on him. He looked to Karen and the woman shrugged, "I mean, she's not wrong, Frank."

Frank sighed and put his head in his hands. It was a long few moments before he looked back up. "Okay," he said.

"Okay?" Amy and Karen asked in unison.

He nodded, "yeah, if this will help things and it really means this much, to the both of you, I can hang up the vest permanently…" _I think_ was his ending thought.

Amy jumped over to him, tackling him in a hug, "Oh my god I never thought you'd say that," she was laughing. Frank smiled. If he had known this was a possible reaction, he might've seriously considered it sooner… maybe.

He returned the hug and laughed, "Alright, alright. Now that we've covered that…" Amy pulled away to look at him, she knew what was next. "Let's talk about tonight." Yep, there it was.

Frank stood her up and she collapsed back into her blue chair. Frank leaned forward, face serious again, elbows on knees, "Why don't you walk us through it?" the question was really a demand, but he was almost enough of a gentleman to disguise it.

"I made some not-so-great choices, majorly disappointed you, and got my door taken off as the consequence," Amy stated.

Frank chuckled, "Oh no, kiddo. The door was thanks only to your slamming it, we haven't even begun to dream up your punishment for this stunt tonight." When Amy's face paled, Karen decided to help her out a bit, "let's start with the rules you broke."

Amy sighed heavily again, refraining from directing a glare toward Karen. She hated this part, yet, experienced it often. She should really work on this. "I, uh… wasn't reachable by phone, I didn't communicate my whereabouts, and I missed curfew by… a lot." Frank nodded, "and lying."

Amy's face scrunched up, "I didn-" Frank held up a finger, "before you finish that, look me in the eye and tell me that when you and Karen agreed on you being home by seven, you planned to show up." Amy's gaze held his for a few moments before her eyes shot down again. "That's what I thought. Where's your phone?" Frank asked, switching gears. Amy reached into her back pocket, and set the smartphone on the coffee table between them.

"Ah so you do still have it. Does it work, or did it fall into a fountain, never turning back on?"

"It works…" the teen mumbled. "Oh good," Frank continued, mocking, "is it on?"

Amy shook her head, "not currently."

Frank reached over and held down the power button until an Apple appeared on the screen. He stared down the young blonde until the phone began buzzing… and buzzing… and buzzing. At least she had the decency to look ashamed.

Counting his point as made, Frank started, "So, here's what's going to happen: for the next week, we will be sitting down at the dining room table, _like a family_, no later than seven, enjoying meals prepared and cleaned up by you," at the look of horror on the teen's face, Frank continued, "It's a great chance to practice your horrid cooking skills, and luckily Karen is a master meal planner so it shouldn't be too difficult to keep up with this week's menu. Understood?"

Amy nodded. Frank pressed, "can't hear your head rattle." The teen rolled her eyes, "yes sir, understood."

"Great!" Frank clapped his hands together in mock enthusiasm, "oh and for the next week you're also grounded. School and home only; no life, no friends, no fun. When you're home, you won't be needing your phone either, so it stays in the kitchen otherwise."

This, Amy had a problem with. "What? Frank, no! I have friends, I have plans, I can't just cancel everything!"

"Do I hear two weeks of grounding?" Frank smirked and the girl's eyes blazed. "Frank! Stop, this isn't fair I-" "Two weeks confirmed," Frank bobbed his head, "are we going for three?"

Amy smartly closed her lips and leaned back in the seat, looking at the coffee table.

"Okay, last thing to cover," Frank started, and Amy looked miserable, "calm down, that's the end of your torturous punishment, though I'm enforcing a new rule: respect," Frank held up his hand when Amy opened her mouth again, "before you start yakking again, let me explain. I'm not talking about you and me here, kid, I think you know what to expect from me when you start mouthing off. I'm talking about sticking to your word, your _promises_, and caring enough to communicate effectively with other people, to show them the same respect I get, even if you don't love 'em yet. You get me?"

Amy did. The reality of the last almost year fell around her and she realized just how terribly she had treated Karen. The strong, amazing woman who wanted nothing more than to just be her friend. Amy looked down at her clasped hands, fighting back tears once again.

"I expect Karen to receive nothing less than your best, especially when I'm not around to enforce it, because I will always find out," He stared her down until their eyes met again. "With that, I think someone is owed an apology…" Frank suggested, in his own way.

Amy moved over to Karen's side, enveloping the woman in a hug, "I'm so sorry, I've been so awful and you've just cared and I'm the worst person ever." The teenager began crying into her shoulder. Karen fully returned it, letting the worry and anger melt away and the night's events. She had been waiting, hoping, for this. With one arm she hooked Frank into the group hug, and he kissed her temple. Maybe this was the beginning of their normal… whatever that was.

_4:21 am_

Karen and Frank were laying in bed, finally.

"What a night," Karen commented, then checked her bedside clock, "or… morning?"

"Yeah that was a doozy. The joys of parenting, right?" and even in the low light, she could see the twinkle in his eye. He loved this, and she was learning to.

Karen rolled over, looking at him, "I don't even think I can sleep now," she whispered.

Frank's eyebrow raised, "oh really?" he asked huskily, "I might have a few ideas…" and with that he brought her face toward his, kissing her deeply, tasting her minty toothpaste. His hand moved from her cheek and with one finger he traced her collarbone, down toward her bellybutton, then lower…

"If I have to live without a door for the foreseeable future, you two sure as hell better not be having sex where I can hear it!" shouted Amy from the other room.

The adults sighed, then started laughing.

Frank looked at Karen, smiling, "I swear, kid's are a whole lot cuter before they can talk."

But this was his life now. Good, bad, ugly, and seemingly without a future of bad guys.

Frank had to admit, Karen and Amy had him wrapped around their fingers. He'd missed this. _Let's see if this can last_.

/Queens of the Castle/

That's chapter one. I'm so excited to finally have this up! Don't worry, things won't stay this serene for long. Plus, we have a lot of questions to answer: how is Amy back? Why is she back? Wasn't she in Florida? Kastle is a thing?

Yes, yes, we will get to them all! Feel free to leave requests and if they fit, we'll work them in.

Please leave a review if you loved it. They inspire me to write so much quicker. What kind of things do we want to see with our Kastle pairing? How about with our angsty teenage girl?

I'm excited to write more, but I am a full-time student who owns and operates her own small business so… we'll see how quickly an update happens.

Thanks again for reading. Xo

EDIT: Shout out to the non-judgmental guest reviewer who pointed out I had Foggy's name wrong. Major facepalm moment. I have reuploaded this with those edits!


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